


8. Stab Wound

by orphan_account



Series: Whumptober 2019 [8]
Category: Marvel Cinematic Universe, The Avengers (Marvel Movies), The Avengers (Marvel) - All Media Types
Genre: Angst, Canonical Character Death, F/M, Hurt/Comfort, I Made Myself Cry, Post-Avengers: Infinity War Part 1 (Movie), Survivor Guilt, Tony Stark Acting as Peter Parker's Parental Figure, Whumptober 2019
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-10-09
Updated: 2019-10-09
Packaged: 2020-11-28 01:34:58
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Major Character Death
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,057
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20958266
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/orphan_account/pseuds/orphan_account
Summary: After fighting Thanos on Titan, Peter fusses over Tony's stab wound.





	8. Stab Wound

Peter didn’t know what to do after the dance-off guy punched Thanos in the face. Dr. Strange had come up with this plan that would definitely end with them winning, but it failed. His ears were ringing from all the crashing sounds and nothing made any sense anymore, but he didn’t have any time to dwell on that. In this time of panic, Peter did what he always did as Spider-Man; he saved people.

As debre and… bits of the moon(?) fell down all around him, so did his allies. Even if there was no definite endgame to work towards, Peter knew he had to try to save them. He swung around, doing his best to catch all of them. When he didn’t see anyone else falling, his thoughts went back to who he didn’t see.

“Mr. Stark!” He ran across the rubble. “Where are you!?”

“Shhh,” a woman said behind him. He turned around to see that blue lady from before. “You’re a child. You shouldn’t have to fight a man like my father. Lay low.” She took off before he could respond. He sighed.  _ I really can’t do anything against him, can I? But… _ He looked down at his suit.  _ I need to try. _ He kept running.

Soon enough, he could see Dr. Strange, Thanos, and Mr. Stark right before the titan disappeared. As he got closer, he could see Dance-off talking to them. Under normal circumstances, Peter would be able to hear him, even from this far away. However, his ears were still ringing and now his head hurt. Something felt deeply wrong.

“Mr. Stark!” he said as he started to get closer. He noticed that the man was on the ground leaning against a rock. “What happened? Are you okay?” It was then that he noticed the stab wound. He knelt next to him. “Are you okay? What can I do?”

Mr. Stark forced a smile. “I’m fine. I fixed it up.”  
He noticed the substance covering the wound. “What is that? Are you sure it works?”

“It’s just a temporary solution, kid. It’s okay.”

Peter got up and looked at Strange. “You’re a doctor, right, or do you just call yourself that?”

The man stood up. “Yes, I used to be a neurosurgeon.” He looked at the wound for about two seconds. “It looks fine for now. I wouldn’t worry about it.”

“There’s only a fifty percent chance it matters, anyway,” Mr. Stark mumbled.

“What do you…?” It didn’t take Peter long to piece it together. “He has the time stone.” Somehow, in the heat of battle, he completely forgot about what was at stake.  _ He’s only one stone away from killing half the universe. _ “What one is he missing? The Vision one, right? They’re gonna protect it. We still have a chance.”

“Pete…” Mr. Stark tried to stand up. Peter stopped him.

“No, you’re hurt. Rest a bit, please.”

“Kid, even if I’m part of the half that lives-”

“Don’t say that!” He took a deep breath. “The Avengers are protecting the stone. They have a good chance of winning.” He sat down. “Even… even he wins and… does it, I want you to live. I really, really want you to be okay. So, can you at least try? Please?”

Mr. Stark nodded. “Same goes for you by the way.”

“I’ll do my best.”

* * *

Tony didn’t know what to do after Peter disappeared. He couldn’t bring himself to move. His kid had just died in his arms. Nothing could fix that. There was no point anymore. The next thing he knew, the blue lady was kneeling in front of him.

“I’m sorry for your loss, but we need to go.” She tried to pull him up by his arm. “We’re alone on this dead planet with no resources during a universe-wide catastrophe. Our best chance of survival is if we leave right now.”

“Then leave.”

She shook her head. “Enough people have died today. There’s no reason to add you.” He nodded reluctantly. She stood and helped him up as well. They slowly made their way to the Guardians’ ship.

* * *

Against all odds, they eventually reached Earth. Tony was happy to learn Pepper, Rhodey, and Happy survived. With that happiness came guilt. How could he feel happy after everything that happened? He spent the first month after coming back isolating himself. He tried time and time again to find a solution. Nothing ever worked. At some point, he just started going to the lab out of habit. 

Between pointless brainstorming sessions, he remembered May, Ned, and MJ. They were all close to Peter. Did all of them know what happened to him? Did they know he went to space and tried to stop this, or did they think he just disappeared like everyone else? Was it Tony’s responsibility to tell them? He could barely think about the kid without wanting to break down. How could he talk about him?

He was relieved when he learned they were all dead anyway, so he wouldn’t have to do anything. Then the guilt came back even stronger.

His cycle of self-destruction continued for a while. It may have gone on forever had Pepper not stopped him in the hallway one day. “We need to talk.”

“I know. You want me to take better care of myself. Sleep more. Drink something other than coffee. I don’t need-”

“Tony, it’s not about that. It’s just… I know you’re still mourning and need more time, but I can’t keep putting off telling you. I’m pregnant.” He froze. It was as if he’d only just then remember that there was a world outside his lab. His fiancé was pregnant. What was he supposed to do? How could he have a kid after his first died in his arms? What right did he have to get a normal life after so many needlessly lost theirs?

_ “I want you to live. I really, really want you to be okay. So, can you at least try?” _

His eyes started to water as he gave Pepper a hug. “Guess we should get back to working on the wedding, then.” She laughed. No matter how complicated things got, or how different the world was now, he had to try to live. It was what Peter wanted, and Tony would do anything for him.

**Author's Note:**

> Thanks for reading! I hope you enjoyed it. I appreciate all kudos and comments. If you have any constructive criticism, please feel free to share. My main goal is always to improve in any way I can.


End file.
